美國布希政府11月17日獨排眾議，完成一項聯邦領地商業開發油頁岩的管理辦法，不過對於外界質疑此法內容未臻完善，以及開採方式對環境可能造成的隱憂，府方一概充耳不聞。
此項辦法由美國內政部土地管理局宣佈，提供油頁岩商業開發行為一套規範框架，內容包括權利金繳納規則與土地放租面積等細項。
該辦法中的開發地，鎖定熟知的格林河流域，佔地200多萬英畝，橫跨科羅拉多、猶他與懷俄明三州。土管局預估美國境內的油頁岩蘊藏量，將可生產超過8,000億桶的石油。
內政部土地礦產管理助理秘書長艾瑞特（Stephen Allred）指出，如此豐富的蘊藏量足足讓美國至少在一個世紀內，不再需要仰賴石油進口。
不過另一方面艾瑞特也承認說，人類迄今仍未開發出低成本的大量資源開採技術，至少在10年之內無其可能。這也是環保人士與部分民主黨議員對此反彈的其中一項原因，同時也擔心為了能將沈積岩中的化合物轉換成合成原油，最後卻為了生產而導致耗盡水和其他能源等不良後果。
「自然資源保護委員會」向來給予油頁岩「地球上最骯髒燃料」的封號，因為光是在提煉過程中就已經比一般石油生產，排放4倍以上的溫室氣體。
不過，艾瑞特對環保人士所關切的問題僅輕描淡寫帶過，卻向記者表示，企業投資以及其他人士將可從管理辦法中了解，在規劃過程中因考量到環境保護層面，整個開採行為將會以公開方式進行。
為了能夠招攬企業參與開發，該辦法特別提供參與公司在繳納權利金上的議價空間，以相對優惠的金額給付開採油頁岩時的土地租賃費。
一般能源公司在聯邦領地上開採傳統石油與天然氣，最高必須繳納12.5%的權利金給聯邦政府。然而，投資油頁岩開發的公司在前5年只需付繳5%的權利金，自第6年起逐年增加1%，一直達到12.5%為止。
艾瑞特認為權利金上的優惠措施相當合理，因為為了開採油頁岩，這些公司必須斥資上億美元投資。
儘管美國大量開採油頁岩究竟將會帶來什麼樣的影響尚無定論，環保人士卻已利用司法訴訟，要脅撤銷布希政府日前開放格林河道油頁岩開採的決定；與此同時，一些民主黨眾議員亦直言無法認同開採油頁岩的這項作法。
即將上任的總統歐巴馬認為，在管理辦法擬定之前，應做好全方位的研究，具體評估油頁岩開採的成本與效益，不過僅就此表達他的看法。
The Bush administration finalized regulations to govern the commercial development of oil shale on federal lands on Monday, rebuffing concerns that the rules are premature and ignoring the serious environmental concerns about tapping the resource.
The rules, announced by the U.S. Interior Department's Bureau of Land Management, provide the regulatory framework for commercial oil shale development, including royalty rates and lease sizes.
The regulations are largely aimed at some two million acres of federal land in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming rich in oil shale - an area known as the Green River formation. The BLM estimates the nation's oil shale reserves could yield some 800 billion barrels of recoverable oil.
That is enough to displace foreign oil imports for more than a century, said Stephen Allred, the Interior Department's assistant secretary for land and minerals management.
But Allred acknowledged commercial technology to economically tap the resource does not exist and could be a decade away from reality.
That is one reason the decision to issue the rules has irked environmentalists and some Democratic lawmakers, who also worry about the massive outlays of water and energy needed to convert compounds in sedimentary rocks into synthetic crude oil.
Oil shale has been labeled the "dirtiest fuel on the planet" by the Natural Resources Defense Council, which estimates that production will emit four times more greenhouse gases than conventional gasoline production.
Allred said little about the environmental concerns of oil shale, but said the regulations will help investors and all those who "want to make sure that there is due diligence and that environmental concerns are being considered as those activities go forth," Allred told reporters.
In a bid to further encourage development, the rules offer a bargain on royalties energy companies must pay to lease lands for oil shale development.
Whereas companies developing conventional oil and gas from public lands pay upwards of 12.5 percent in royalties to the federal government, those tapping oil shale will only have to pay five percent during the first five years of production. The rate will then rise one percent every year thereafter until the rate reaches 12.5 percent.
Allred defended the discount, noting that companies are going to spend "hundreds of millions of dollars" to develop oil shale.
What impact the rules will ultimately have on U.S. development of oil shale is uncertain. Environmentalists have threatened to sue to repeal an earlier Bush administration decision to open the Green River corridor to oil shale production and there is vocal opposition to oil shale from some Democrats in Congress.
President-elect Barack Obama has previously suggested more research is needed to understand the costs and benefits of oil shale development, but has said little else on the issue.
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